Place of Origin

England

Date of Composition

mostly ca. 1780, with additions to ca. 1821

Description

This 167-page English cookbook contains 241 consecutively numbered recipes in a single hand, followed by several pages of additional entries in a slightly later hand. The library has determined that the bulk of the book was compiled around 1780. The later entries presumably extend into the early nineteenth century, as they conclude with this note: "Made ginger wine Oct.r 29th 1821." The recipes are preceded by a table of contents. The book is identified as "Volume 1." A second volume, if one was compiled, may have contained medical recipes and/or recipes for fruit preserving and confectionary, which the the present volume appears to lack.

The book contains a range of recipes, including instructions for main courses, egg dishes, preserved meat and fish, vegetables, pickles, puddings, desserts, and wines. Several recipes show Anglo-Indian influence, including those for curries, Mulligatawny soup, and Indian relishes. There are also a few French recipes, including three from the Hôtel de York in Paris. All recipes are attributed, most of them apparently to friends of the compiler.